The Greatness of America
This paper is about the greatness of America; how it was attained and whether it can be recovered. It was a relatively small and weak country that has come a long way to become the superpower it is. There were various factors which contributed to the rising of the country. The current President of the United States of America uses a slogan to “Make America Great Again”. This slogan has been used before by other presidents such as Washington. In this paper, we will look at the factors which led to its greatness and determine whether America can become great again.
The America we now know was a small country which was weak in the face of war with other countries. It was after World War II that America built the most powerful military in the whole world. This was among the factors that made America great. Others include strong Judeo-Christian ethics, suitable geographical location (away from foes), a merit-based society (lack of tribes and aristocracy allowed individuals to rise) and a constitution that limited centralized government. This is because once the government is centralized it will grow bigger and have more power, and this would lead to oppressing the poor.
Another factor which contributed to the American greatness is the foreign policy. These foreign policies are aimed at benefitting America and making it stronger and more powerful. It seeks to assure America’s defense and to protect America’s interests. All the presidents who ruled America wanted a free world which is marked by open trade and mutual defense.
The new American president however, has something else in mind. During his inaugural address, he stated that all countries want to use America; to exploit and surpass them. This means that in his era, the needs of America will come first (Krauthammer, 2017). This is seen to go against the American exceptionalism. The country is no longer unique as it defines itself by its narrow economic and security needs rather than ensuring the safety of allies as should a superpower. America is embarking on smallness and this is started by withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Global leadership was what enabled America to grow and abandoning it would be at their peril.
There are other policies implemented by trump such as cost sharing during foreign interventions, basing taxes on manufacturing country’s currency and a 5-point tax plan which determines tax based on someone’s income (Breitbart.com, 2015).
The obstacles facing this president include:
- Little loyalty. The president entered the White House being very unpopular
- The economy may not deliver to achieve his growth rate of from 1% to 4%. The expected growth ranges between 1.9 and 2.3% which is roughly half of Trump’s target.
- Standing aside from the world is like locking oneself away. One cannot emerge a winner under such conditions (Ferguson, 2017).
My thoughts on the issue are that Trump is an intensive man. He did not move from being a businessman to being the president of America out of sheer luck. Every leader has his own ambitions and has strategies put in place to help achieve his goals. There is hope in making America great again and the person spearheading the plan.
References
Breitbart.com, (2015). The man with a plan: Donald Trump’s 5-part strategy to make America
great again. .
Krauthammer, C. (2017). Trump’s inaugural address abdicates America’s role as global leader. The Washington Post.
